Building On A Rich Tennis Legacy

Coco Gauff plays on her “home” court at the Delray Beach Tennis Stadium.

I saw the future of women’s tennis Saturday night and her name is Coco.

At age 15, Coco Gauff has become a global sensation. But she’s also a native of Delray Beach and seeing her on the stadium court in her hometown was something special.

In its 23 year history, the Delray Open never featured a woman’s match. So history was made when Coco took on NCAA singles champ Estela Perez-Somarriba of the University of Miami Saturday night before a packed house.

It was a spirited match. Coco won in straight sets and the crowd was loud, large and thrilled to be seeing a local prodigy.

We saw many of our neighbors and friends.  Delray came out to support their hometown hero and it was a moment of civic pride in a city sorely needing one at the moment.

I’ve been watching tennis since I was 8 or 9 years old and every year we used to go to the U.S. Open. So I’ve seen them all from Billie Jean and Chrissie to Steffi and the Williams sisters.

Coco has the chops.

She moved beautifully, has a powerful serve, a deft drop shot, is not afraid to to rush the net and has crisp and powerful ground strokes. She’s the real deal.

But what distinguishes her is her competitive spirit. You can see it, you can feel it, she’s not afraid of the spotlight. She knows she belongs.

I’ve had the pleasure of knowing her family for years and they are lovely people. Based on her interviews, Coco seems grounded, humble and gracious. She reminds me of her grandmother Yvonne Odom, who is also a local historical figure. Mrs. Odom was the first African American to attend Atlantic High School and has been a civic leader for decades.

In her post match comments, Coco praised her opponent, talked glowingly about her hometown and was self deprecating— noting she lost a first round junior match a few years back at the Delray Tennis Center. She shows abundant signs of maturity, far, far, beyond her 15 years. That’s going to be important as she progresses in her career.

While Coco is the latest great tennis story in Delray, she’s not the first.

Delray has a rich tennis history.

In addition to the Delray Open and Coco, the city once hosted the event that became the Miami Open, is home to many touring pro’s and saw prodigies such as the Williams sisters and Andy Roddick cut their teeth on local courts.

Visionary Ian Laver created the Laver’s Resort off of Linton Boulevard, a project built around tennis. We once were home to the Sunshine and Continental Cups, hosted Fed and Davis Cup ties, senior events, national junior championships and more.

Center court at the stadium has seen the likes of Chris Evert (who hosts her Pro-Celebrity Classic there every year)  Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, Jimmy Connors, Bjorn Borg, Guillermo Vilas, Kei Nishikori, Juan Martin Del Potro, John McEnroe, Mats Wilander, Lindsay Davenport, the Bryan Brothers, James Blake as well as locals Vince Spadea, Aaron Krickstein and Kevin Anderson who liked the town so much he bought a place here.

And the list goes on.

We should celebrate our tennis heritage. It’s special.

And it brings excitement, publicity and dollars to Delray.

The Tennis Channel is airing the tournament all week, junior events bring “heads in beds” during off peak months and the branding opportunities are endless and global. It is worth our investment and it’s worth it for us to nurture the sport too by giving some thought to how it fits into the bigger picture.

Coco is the latest and may yet end up the greatest of Delray tennis stories.

She’s part of a rich legacy. And a source of hometown pride.

To paraphrase Dr. Seuss: oh the places she will go. And oh the places tennis can take us.

Good Morning America To Feature Delray

Good Morning Delray Beach

Good Morning Delray Beach

The public is invited to watch the live airing of ABC’s Good Morning America (GMA) at the Chris Evert-Raymond James Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic on Sunday, November 23, 2014.  The show will film several live segments from the Delray Beach Tennis Center, 201 West Atlantic Avenue, featuring meteorologist Rob Marciano.

In order to be a part of this special event, with a chance to appear in the show’s audience, the public is asked to arrive at the Tennis Center on Sunday, November 23, at 6:15 am.  Guests who arrive between 6:15 am – 6:45 am will receive one (1) complimentary admission ticket for the tennis matches beginning at 11:00 am later that day.

Have some early morning fun at the Chris Evert/Raymond James Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic on Sunday, November 23!  For more information, call (561) 243-7190.

About the Chris Evert/Raymond James Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic
The City of Delray Beach is proud to host the 2014 Chris Evert/Raymond James Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic, November 21-23.  Tennis legend Chris Evert, in association with Broward Health Chris Evert Children’s Hospital, will be joined by renowned athletes and well known celebrities to support at-risk children and families in Palm Beach County and Florida.  Since 1989, Chris Evert Charities has contributed over $21.2 million in an ongoing campaign against drug abuse and child neglect. 

Exciting events are planned for November 21-23 including the Pro-Am Tennis and Lunch with Chrissie & Friends, Classic Cocktail Reception, Pro-Celebrity Gala presented by Esurance and the weekend Tennis Classic.  To purchase tickets, call (561) 394-2400. For schedule of events and additional information, visit www.chrisevert.org.